Cumberland got their first loss of the season against McKendree, 2-1. The Bearcats scored both of their runs in the bottom of the seventh of a seven-inning game. Will Locante of the Bulldogs went the distance, allowed only three hits, but two of those hits, and the only walk issued by Locante, came in the seventh inning. C Kyle Moll hit an RBI single to tie it. Moll then scored the winning run on a squeeze bunt.
The Bulldogs rebounded with a 12-3 win over McKendree, then defeated Belhaven 4-2. Aaron Wilkerson got the win over Belhaven, went seven innings, allowed four hits, struck out seven. The Bulldogs out-hit the Blazers by only 7-6, but two of the Bulldogs' hits were home runs by RF Cory Farris; he batted in all four runs. Farris hit another home run earlier in the day against McKendree.
The Bulldogs host Brewton-Parker Feb. 25-26, and Indiana Tech Feb. 27. Brewton-Parker is 10-1 (see below). The Blazers, who are 7-2, host Bethel (TN) Tuesday and Wednesday, and LSU-Alexandria Feb. 25-26.
Lee lost two mid-week games, to Tennessee Wesleyan 9-8, and Union C. (KY) 11-5. The Flames had an easier time with Illinois Tech, sweeping four games with lopsided scores. Shay Crawford pitched a one-hit shutout, and Jay Bolen pitched a no-hitter that was shortened to five innings by the mercy rule. Bolen recorded seven strikeouts. He is 3-0, 0.60 ERA for the season, and Crawford has yet to allow a run. The Flames are 10-3. They host Rio Grande on Monday, and Iowa Wesleyan Feb. 26.
Cal Baptist started the week with a 5-0 win over La Sierra; Taylor Siemems went eight innings, allowed three hits. Patrick Smith pitched a perfect ninth inning to complete the shutout. The Lancers then split two games with British Columbia. The Lancers won the first game 8-2; Drew Madrigal went six innings, allowed two runs on six hits. Jesse Arreola pitched the final three innings, held the Thunderbirds scoreless, struck out three. RF Zach Esquerra hit a two-run home run to bat in the winning run. Story from Cal Baptist site: CBU tops UBC. The Thunderbirds won the second game 7-2. Sheldon McDonald and Eric Brown combined to hold the Lancers to six hits. The each allowed one run on three hits; McDonald struck out six. CF Blake Carruthers went 3-4 with three RBI.
The Lancers open their Golden State Athletic Conference schedule at Concordia-Irvine Wednesday and Thursday, then play Concordia-Irvine at home Feb. 26.
New Lewis-Clark State Coach Gary Picone got his first loss Saturday against Division II Western Oregon, 5-2. The previous day, the Warriors shut out another Division II team, Saint Martin's, 5-0. Tyler Barrett pitched the first seven innings of the shutout, allowed three hits, struck out 10. Jorge Sanchez and Zach Clanton each pitched a perfect inning to finish it.
The Warriors finished the weekend with a 4-2 win over Linfield, a good Division III team. CF Connor Moore batted in the winning run, and starter Tyrell Poggemeyer shut out Linfield for six innings, allowed two hits.
The Warriors are now 7-1. They host Dickinson State Monday and Tuesday, and Corban Feb. 25-26.
Lubbock Christian swept four games against Lindenwood, 13-3, 12-0, 18-15, and 10-3. Lucas Whitmore got a four-hit shutout in the second game, which was mercy-ruled after five innings. Richard Bohlken hit two home runs in the third game, and two more (five RBI) in the fourth. The Chaparrals are 8-0. They visit Division III McMurray on Tuesday, and host Southern Nazarene Feb. 25-26.
Embry-Riddle lost two of three in mid-week to Brewton-Parker. The Eagles won the first game of the series 6-3 (10 innings), and they needed a two-run home run by RF Ian MacGeorge in the top of the ninth to send it into extra innings. An RBI single by 1B Chris Page won it in the tenth. Steve Ortman, who struck out four of the seven batters he faced, got the win.
The Eagles got their first two losses of the season the next day. The score of the first one was 2-0. Both starters, Daniel Eaton for the Eagles, and Ricky Rogers for the Barons, pitched complete seven-inning games. Rogers allowed only two hits, struck out nine. In the second game, the Barons took an 8-0 lead, but the Eagles came back with six runs in the fifth inning (three-run by 3B Steve Sabins), and three in the seventh (another three-run home run by Sabins), but the game ended with two strikeouts by reliever Jacob Gore.
The Eagles then swept three games from Webber International, 3-1, 10-8, and 4-2. Ryan Vigue, Robbie Ratliff, and Tucker Jensen got the wins. The Eagles are now 10-2. Their next opponent is Ave Maria Feb. 25-26.
Brewton Parker is 10-1. They visit Savannah College of Art and Design on Tuesday, and visit Cumberland Feb. 25-26.
Oklahoma City defeated Southern Nazarene 15-4, MidAmerica Nazarene 2-1, 7-6, and 13-2, and Avila 4-0. In the first game against MidAmerica Nazarene, LF Mark Purser hit an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to win it; Cody Crabaugh, who took the mound in the top of the ninth, got the win by throwing only eight pitches. In the win over Avila, Stars starter Corey Theriot took a no-hitter into the sixth inning, and ended up going 8 1/3 innings, allowed two hits, struck out nine. The Stars are 6-2. They host Division II Central Oklahoma on Tuesday, and visit Wayland Baptist Feb. 25-26.
Point Loma Nazarene defeated Cal State San Marcos 4-1; CF Rashad Taylor hit a two-run home run in the seventh inning to break a 1-1 tie. Josh Dexheimer got the win in relief; starter Brett Carlile pitched the first six innings, allowed one run on three hits. The Sea Lions are 5-2. They start their GSAC schedule hosting Biola Wednesday and Thursday, then visit Biola Feb. 26.
Southern Polytechnic won two against Tennessee Temple, 6-0 and 12-0; Brad Hutson and J.B. Skees combined for the one-hit shutout in the first game, and four pitchers combined for a one-hit shutout in the second game; Matt Barger got the win. The Hornets then won two of three against Trevecca Nazarene, winning 9-8, losing 8-3, and winning 6-2; Tucker Stone and Josh Means got the wins. The Hornets are 10-3. They travel to Reinhardt on Tuesday, and host Saint Thomas (FL) Feb. 25-26.
British Columbia defeated The Master's 7-3 and lost to Westmont 8-5 prior to the split with Cal Baptist. Miles Verweel got the win against The Master's in his first career start, and Andrew Ledger put in a very good four-inning relief effort; one run on two hits. Chris Plance pitched seven scoreless innings in relief for Westmont, allowed four hits, got the win. The Thunderbirds finished theirt California tour with a 4-5 record. They open their NAIA West schedule at College of Idaho Feb. 26-27.
South Carolina-Beaufort got a 6-5 win at Edward Waters, and swept three games against Ave Maria, 5-0, 13-1, and 13-7. Adam Miller pitched a complete-game shutout (seven hits, six strikeouts) in the first game against Ave Maria. The Sand Sharks are 9-1. Next up is another game at Edward Waters on Tuesday, and three games at Webber International Feb. 25-26.
More teams with good starts: Union U. (TN) is 8-0, Concordia-Irvine is 6-0, Shorter is 13-1, and Faulkner is 12-2.